Learn more about the Kashi controversy from Lucine Biotechnology or from the original investigative report about Kashi’s ingredients, the Cornucopia Institute’s “Cereal Crimes”.

To learn more, see these stories: The Body Odd – You Are What You Read or Science Daily – ‘Losing Yourself’ in a Fictional Character Can Affect Your Real Life, or explore the research yourself.

For more details, read the full article in Time or check out the study itself.

“Charlie, hit me again. Please.”

Charlie cocked a brow at the man seated at the end of the bar. “Don’t you need a little break, Spidey? That’s three in an hour, fella. Give ’em time to digest, for God’s sake.”

“Do I tell you how to pour, Charlie?” But the stocky man knew when he’d been cut off. He huddled over his empty glass, then glanced surreptitiously around him at the almost empty room. Little early yet for the regular Thursday night crowd, but vigilance had become a habit with him. He had seen that Doc guy—the PsyOps dude—a couple times, and he was making sure to keep out of his way. Wasn’t sure if the guy knew he was involved in the whole mess, but he didn’t want to find out the hard way. The guy had made him nervous enough when he’d thought it was all just a little drunken machismo, but once he’d figured out the truth about Doc’s gal…sh*t, he knew he was lucky to be alive, and he wanted to stay that way. And he had never forgotten that he had her to thank for that. Maybe someday he’d thank her for the ten grand he now had hidden in his grandmother’s basement. Not that he hadn’t earned it. Fair and square. He was an honorable fellow.

So why did he still feel so lousy about the whole thing? He’d done the best he could, hadn’t he? Under the circumstances. If he hadn’t done what he did, surely it would have been worse for her, right? ’Course, what could be worse than having your gray matter grilled? Looked like the lady still didn’t know her own name. Third Street. Jesus. Not like she didn’t know how to take care of herself, but…three against one? Nobody likes those odds. Then again, maybe she didn’t know how to take care of herself. Not anymore. Not with a hard-boiled head. A toasted tomato. The stocky man grimaced.

Such a nice lady, too. Maybe he should’ve done more to help her. Or maybe he should’ve moved to another town. Still could. He was bound to run into one of those PsyOps people sooner or later, just like he did today. And the next one would probably kill him.

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Nic watched with amusement. Clearly, the older woman was just relieved not to have a screaming child in her arms any longer, but all Josie was worried about was soothing the woman’s feelings that the baby preferred a family friend to his own grandmother when he was most upset. Mama K just sighed and headed back out to the porch. Nic resumed drying the dishes, and Josie returned to the sink, but only to lean her back against it, while she held Nate, still comforting him, stroking and kissing the little red curls on his head, and patting his behind. The boy remained alert and awake, but gradually his tense muscles loosened and drooped, one of his legs flopped, and the hand firmly gripping Josie’s hair finally released.

“He is unusually attached to you.”

“Attached, yes. Unusual? I don’t think so. He’s just used to having me around. The twins were still really little when he came along, and twins, as you can imagine, are very demanding. Especially those little girls. I mean, it was just boobs, boobs, boobs, twenty-four-seven.” Nic laughed out loud, and then Josie did, too. “Oh, but I’m serious. Poor Maggie. And then to find out she was pregnant again so soon…” Josie looked up in her head and muttered, “Shawn—horny b*stard.” Nic quirked an eyebrow at her, and her hand flew to her mouth. “Oh, I didn’t mean to say that out loud.”

Nic had to fight not to laugh again. Boobs, twenty-four-seven. Horny b*stard. Being around Josie was like putting on your favorite old pair of slippers.

“Anyhow, there was no way Maggie could handle all three kids with Shawn gone to work all day. He’s a great dad and all, but he works really long hours, and it was just a zoo around here, so I came to help. I pretty much moved in for the first six months of Nate’s life.” She touched the boy’s cheek gently, and he pulled his thumb out of his mouth to clasp onto her fingers. “Granted, I’m not much use in the kitchen or the laundry or whatever, but what these guys need, I got.” She lifted the boy up, so they were face to face, and grinned at him, wrinkling up her nose. He reached gleefully toward her face, then snagged one of the bright purple earrings she was wearing. “Ooh, oh, ouch! Honey, Aunt Jo needs that ear. Sweetie, let go, please…”

Nic quickly set down the drying and turned to them. He gently lifted the hook out of Josie’s ear, leaving the earring in Nate’s hand. “Is it all right if he has it?”

“As long as he doesn’t poke it in his eye.” She lowered him so he sat around her waist while he played with it.

“But how did you work while you helped Maggie with the children?”

She tipped her head slightly, “Oh, I just cut down on my contracts for a while…way down.” She seemed far away for a moment, then came back, “I’d been working too much. I needed a break.”

“You were not worried about your business, or your reputation…”

“No. I’m good at what I do. I figured they’d call back, and most of them have. The ones that haven’t—” She shrugged. “Their loss. Besides, what’s more important?” She looked straight at him.

“The family, of course.”

“You agree?”

“Completely.” He smiled, then intercepted the earring just as Nate was about to shove it up his nose.

Nic nodded to himself—question answered. Five hundred points to the little lady in the t-shirt and sarong. It would be a cold day in hell before Linda Coleridge put family before work. And a bitterly freezing one before she shrugged her shoulders at the thought of losing a client over a friend’s child care needs. Hey, wait a minute—Linda Coleridge? Linda Remedian! He hadn’t thought of his ex by her maiden name in years…

Nic picked up the towel again. Wasn’t there something else that needed drying?

Buy Little Miss Straight Lace now.

As you can see, every reader model appeals to a different market, based on the user’s needs. Contrary to popular forum discussions of “my reader’s better than yours”, it’s really about what the individual is looking for in a reading device. For example, the Kobo eReader is a basic model without bells and whistles, but Kobo is the only major ebookstore that sells to Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, as well as the U.S. and U.K. Amazon’s Kindle and Barnes & Noble’s original Nook both offer WiFi and free 3G options, along with snazzy features like built-in MP3 players and limited book sharing, but only the Kindle has text-to-speech capability. On the other hand, the NookColor has tts and can show children’s books, magazines, and illustrated manuals in 16 million vibrant colors, while only the Sony Reader allows stylus input for note-taking.

See where I’m going with this? There is no “best ebook reader”. It’s all about you, the end user, and what’s important for your lifestyle. If choosing an ebook reader is a decision you are ready to make, go back and read my previous post first, then study the table below to see which model you should choose.

Technology
The first step in selecting an ereader is to ask the basic question: will I be able to get the books I want for my device? All ebooks are not available in all countries, in all formats, and in all stores, so you have to be aware of the book selection that will be available for your reader. eBook formats can be open, where the format is widely available and programs exist to convert between formats, or they can be proprietary, where the book will require special software to be read.

While an open format, like ePub, will make your life easier and increase your book selection, you shouldn’t necessarily be scared off by a proprietary format. Most of the device manufacturers make their reading software freely available for other common devices like PCs, smartphones, and tablets. If you want to be able to switch between reading devices seamlessly, make sure your chosen product’s software has this flexibility. You’ll also want to know if the software provides for bookmarking (remembering your last read page) across devices.

Physical Attributes
The size, weight, style, and durability of the unit should be your next consideration. Some people want the slimmest, lightest unit they can find to maximize portability, while others prefer a larger screen for detailed graphic images or fewer page turns. Road Warriors might be more concerned with the strength and durability of the device, if they tend to be rough on their baggage.

You must also choose between a backlit screen (like an ordinary laptop computer) and the newer eInk technology. eInk is a great innovation for reading outdoors, having paper-like readability even in bright sunlight. eInk also uses very little power, but is slower to draw the screen and is currently available only in black and white. If you plan on using your reader to peruse a lot of magazines or illustrated books, eInk is probably not for you. It’s also not the best choice if you frequently read in a dark room, as it requires an external light source, while backlit models provide their own light. Just as with PCs, screen size and brightness have a great impact on battery life, so be sure to check this metric before you buy.

Regardless of screen size, however, most models offer adjustable font styles and sizes, so even folks with poor eyesight can tailor their reading experience to a comfortable viewing level.

You should also think about whether or not you want a keyboard, touchscreen, or button-only model. Some units are operated with just a few buttons, allowing you to select items from menus and move back and forth through the book. Others have touchscreens which offer more flexibility, while still other models have full QWERTY keyboards that allow you to type notes, enter URLs, or send emails.

One confusing and important feature of ebook readers is their connectivity ability. You will have the option to choose between models that only connect to book sources via a hard-wired connection (USB), others that offer WiFi connectivity, and some that have a 3G capability, just like a cell phone. There are currently devices on the market that offer both WiFi and 3G connectivity without connection charges or usage limits.

Additional Capabilities
In addition to their ability to present books in a digital format, some ebook readers offer advanced computing features like games, web browsing, email, and built-in MP3 players. Several models also offer text-to-speech, which will read any ebook to you (not just audiobooks). This is straight computerized reading, of course, not a dramatic interpretation of the book, and there can be contextual errors, but it’s still a great feature to have while driving or exercising, or for those who can’t read even the super-sized fonts comfortably.

Sharing
One critical feature for some avid readers is the ability to share books with their friends and family. Certain models allow sharing of purchased ebooks, where you can “lend” the book to another ereader owner with the same model. So far, this is quite limited, as in a one-time loan of 14 days only, so read the fine print on this feature. Some vendors allow users to share ebook accounts, however, which means everyone on the account can read books purchased by anyone on the count, similar to a “friends & family” phone plan.

Another type of sharing is through library ebook lending programs. These work just like paper book lending programs with the advantage of automatically “returning” the book, so you never get stuck with late fees. There is a limited selection of such books, though, and waiting lists can be long, so don’t think this is like a giant free bookstore.

As you can see, an ebook reader purchase decision can be a complicated one. If you’re ready to decide, check out this point-by-point ebook reader comparison chart.

When Nic returned to the balcony, Nina was bending over the half-wall, apparently looking for Josie. Robert grabbed her around the waist and pulled her back upright. “Hey, Babe, take it easy. I don’t want you to fall. She’ll get here.”

“You see her now?” asked Nic.

Nina spun around and looked at him. She tilted her head. “Purple. I like it, Nic. You needed some color.”

Nic ran his hands down the front of the golf shirt and said, “Josie gave it to me.”

Nina grinned. “Well, aren’t you two cute?” Then she pointed in the general direction from which Josie was apparently coming and added, “Because she’s wearing some lavender dress she said you bought for her. Awwwww.” Nina batted her eyelashes furiously.

“Oh, so that’s her,” said Robert, now leaning on the half-wall himself, and pointing. “Gee, and I thought she was that big lady in the yellow tent dress.” He started laughing at his own joke.

Nic joined them at the half-wall. “Oh, you are so funny, Robert. Now you know why Josie could not drag herself out of bed this morning to meet you before we left.”

Robert turned to Nic and gave him a cockeyed grin. “Somehow, Nic, I doubt my sense of humor has anything to do with how incredibly exhausted your girlfriend always seems to be.”

“Or how hungry,” added Nina.

Nic tried to scowl at them, but couldn’t keep the corners of his mouth from turning up.

Robert pressed a hand down onto the half-wall, and pushed his bangs off his forehead again, as he looked out. “Hey, I can see her pretty well now. Gee, she’s really cute, Nic.” He waved to her. Josie’s walk slowed, and she seemed to stare at him oddly. “Uh, yeah—she doesn’t have a clue who I am. Nic, you wave.”

She was still some distance away and kept coming. Nic waved at her as she crossed the boardwalk and approached the building. He called to her, “Hey, Jos, come on up, honey. You are missing the sunset.” He beckoned to her, but her eyes were focused on Robert. She stopped walking and just stood.

Nina called to her, “C’mon, Josie. We want to open the wine.” She turned to Nic, “What’s wrong? Why did she stop?”

“I don’t know.” He beckoned and yelled down to her again, “Josie! Sweetheart. Come on!” Josie’s gaze drifted over to Nic for a moment. She looked a little pale. Then suddenly, she spun around and headed back the way she’d come, breaking into a run. “JOSIE! Wait! Come back! What the hell is she doing?”

“Maybe she left something on the boat?” offered Nina.

Nic started across the balcony. “I’m going after her.”

“Just wait a minute, Nic. I’m sure she’ll be right back,” said Robert.

But Nic was already at the French doors. “Uh-uh. It is getting dark.” Then he stopped and stepped back to the umbrella table. He snatched his cell phone off it, and added, “Something is not right.”

Buy Little Miss Straight Lace now.

For example, you can append #book, #ebook, #kindle, and/or #nook anytime you tweet about books, ebooks, or ereaders. People who are looking for information about any of these, can search within Twitter or on Twitter-related sites like Twubs, Twibes, or Topsy for all tweets with those hashtags. This system takes the overwhelming mish-mash of sound bites that is Twitter and turns it into a useful, organized directory of information.

One hashtag that is particularly useful for authors is “#samplesunday”. This hashtag is the brainchild of author David Wiseheart, who first proposed its use on his blog, “Kindle Author”. The point of #samplesunday is to post an excerpt of your writing on your website, and then tweet about it with the hashtag #samplesunday. You can then search for Sunday samples, read them, comment on them, and of course, retweet them. It’s a quick and easy way for authors to spread the word about their work and show it off to those who are looking for something new to read for the week.

I’ve used #SampleSunday several times, and it always increases traffic to our book pages, so I highly recommend it as a book marketing method. Why not try it yourself this week?

Here are some of our samples from past #SampleSunday’s.

As I mentioned previously, one way to move your book up in the Amazon search list is to increase your book’s tag counts, and by that, I don’t mean the number of different tags, but rather, the number of customers clicking the tags. A minimum of 50 is probably required to see a noticeable change in position, and if your book is in a competitive category, like romance or fantasy, it will probably take 100-200 taggers to push your work towards the front of the line.

So if your list of friends and family members is a bit shy of that, where are you going to find that many people to tag your book? The answer is a tagging thread. A tagging thread is just a chain of messages on a website or forum where Amazon authors gather for virtual chats and community. For example, MobileRead.com, which is a forum for fans of ebook reading devices, has a tagging thread, as does KindleBoards.com, a Kindle-specific forum. The Kindle Direct Publishing site also has a tagging thread in its forums. Any Amazon author is welcome to join these threads, as long as he is willing to participate and reciprocate. The idea is that each participant posts a message with his Amazon book links in it, and the other members of the thread visit those book pages and click on the tags.

It can seem daunting at first to join a tagging thread, as all of the members seem to know each other already, and the existing thread can be really, really long. For example, the KindleBoards thread has over 10,000 posts as of this writing, but don’t let that scare you off. You should realize that the success of a tagging thread depends on a constant influx of new members, so you will not be looked upon as an interloper when you join, and furthermore, no one expects you to go back and read all 10,000 posts from the beginning.

Keep the following guidelines in mind when you join, and you will be welcomed into the thread and quickly find yourself getting tagged up:

As long as you participate in the thread, you will continue to get new tags and new eyes on your books; remember, most authors are avid readers as well as writers, so you will certainly get a few sales just from other taggers. Of course, you’ll probably end up buying a lot of their books, as well!